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News December 2014

Inoue blasts out Narvaez and emerges as a new star of boxing

30.12.2014

By Michael J Jones

Earlier today in Tokyo, Japanese youngster Naoya Inoue scored the best win of his short career when stopping the very experienced Argentine Omar Andres Narvaez in just two explosive rounds. The win sees the former WBC light-flyweight champion add the WBO World super-flyweight crown to his fast growing collection.

To put the win into context; Narvaez had never previously been stopped in 46 contests which includes his sole defeat to a near-prime Nonito Donaire up at bantamweight three years ago. The emphatic and conclusive victory occurred in Inoue’s eighth professional bout.

A pro for just two years, the Japanese puncher won the Japanese title in his fourth fight before dethroning in-form Mexican Adrian Hernandez in April of this year to become the WBC light-flyweight ruler. The 21 year old “Monster” defended once before making the audacious bid to dethrone the long-time champion Narvaez two weight divisions above his own.

Although “El Huracan” is now some 39-years-old, he has been a savvy and tough road warrior for many years now and at the very least he was expected to give the young Asian challenger a stern argument.

Inoue just walked right through him though.

The bout started with the more-experienced man tasting a looping right hand which dropped him. He arose poker-faced but was dropped soon after by a glancing left. With just a minute gone things didn’t look to good for Omar Andres but he admirably saw out the final two minutes of the round.

Inoue wasn’t about to let his chance slip though as he immediately resumed his predatory stalking of his prey in the second. Narvaez seemed to accept he wasn’t going to keep the younger man off him and started popping out counter-punches. One notable left hand-right hook thudded into Naoya’s face but he barely blinked and resumed his menacing attack.

A left hand counter of the former light-fly champion dropped the aging titlist for the third time. Again he bravely got up to face more punishment and for a few seconds he kept out of trouble. In the dying seconds of the round though a good one-two from the orthodox Inoue was followed by a thudding body shot which took all of the remaining fight out of the long-time champion.

The official time was 3:01 though it seemed a shade sooner than that.

With the stunning victory, the new champion is now 8-0 (7) and a two-weight world champion. He has achieved much in a short space of time with many now acknowledging him as the rightful “Fighter of the year”. Today the “Monster” lived up to his nick-name and one can only dream of his future potential which ever path he takes.

For the beaten Narvaez, who was also a long-time WBO champion as a flyweight before his current reign, surely only retirement now looms though he can content himself that he lost to a special fighter who must surely now be on the verge of a pound-for-pound ranking after a whirlwind year.

Final thought: do we finally have a man who can test a certain Mr Gonzalez? Maybe.